What we’re reading (5/21)
“Red Lobster Superfans Desperately Want A Piece Of The Bankrupt Chain” (Business Insider). “At the time the auctions closed, TAGeX's website showed that the entire contents of each location sold for between $10,000 and $35,000. That included everything from upright refrigerators and microwaves to fish tanks, furniture, and, in some cases, decor.”
“The High-Class Problem That Comes With Home Equity” (New York Times). “[R]everse mortgages or something like them seem inevitable in a nation where individuals are entirely responsible for their own retirement savings.”
“The Growing Importance Of Desalination” (Contrary). “[M]odern desalination plants are capable of converting roughly 80% of the saline water piped into potable water. The remainder is so heavily concentrated with salt that filtering it even further would be economically inefficient. This remainder is called brine and needs to be disposed of appropriately. An additional consideration for modern plants is that the filtration membranes need to be maintained and cleaned periodically as molecular compounds and minerals can get stuck in the membrane, decreasing its efficiency.”
“East Coast Has A Giant Offshore Freshwater Aquifer—How Did It Get There?” (ars technica). “For decades, scientists have known about an aquifer off the US East Coast. It stretches from Martha’s Vineyard to New Jersey and holds almost as much water as two Lake Ontarios. Research presented at the American Geophysical Union conference in December attempted to explain where the water came from—a key step in finding out where other undersea aquifers lie hidden around the world.”
“Private Equity Is No Place For Your Nest Egg” (Bloomberg). “Retirement is expensive. If you’re lucky, yours will last a few decades, and you’ll be earning no or very little income. So if you want to have enough money when you retire, you basically have three options: Save more, take more risk with your investments, or work longer. Many people find the first and third options undesirable or impossible. That leaves the second option. And despite what people such as Marc Rowan might lead you to believe, there’s really no way to get a higher return without taking more risk.”
